Vista

An 11-month-old baby died Friday after falling, apparently headfirst, into a bucket of water at his home in Vista.

Flown by helicopter to Children’s Hospital, Jesus Sandoval was placed on life-support systems, but he died just before midnight Friday, according to the San Diego county coroner’s office.

The Sandoval infant, who was apparently left unattended for a moment in the family living room, crawled 20 feet to the water bucket and fell in head-first, according to a spokesman for the coroner’s office.

An autopsy confirmed that drowning was the cause of death, the coroner’s official said.

Hospital spokeswoman Sharon Ross said the baby is the son of Hector and Clotilde Sandoval of the 200 block of West Los Angeles Drive.

Several San Diego-area children have been taken to the hospital after nearly drowning since Easter, Ross said. She said three 2-year-old babies remain hospitalized and two others have been treated and released. A 16-year-old girl, drowned in the ocean, she said.

“There just seems to be a rash of drowning incidents right now,” Ross said. “People are going outside more, I guess, and they should be more careful so this kind of thing won’t happen.”

Sheriff’s Sgt. Roy Stamper said that Deputy Ed Gomez and a Vista Fire Department crew dispatched to the house about 2:30 p.m. were able to revive the child temporarily.